Our institutions of higher education have changed a lot over the last half century. They cost much more, but are they better?

In today’s Martin Center article, Jon Jewett, who enrolled at the University of Texas Law School in 1972, ponders how his school has changed.

First, there’s the matter of expense. Jewett writes, “In 1972, tuition and fees were $300 for in-state students and $1,400 for out-of-state students, which, adjusted for inflation, amounts to $2,112 and $9,858 in today’s dollars. Tuition and fees for 2022 are $36,429 (in-state) and $54,096 (out-of-state). The effective increase in tuition is not quite as dramatic as these numbers indicate, because Texas currently awards grants and scholarships to over 90 percent of its students, with a median grant of about $15,000. Nevertheless, the true all-in cost of attending the law school appears to be roughly three times greater than it was in 1972. “

When Jewett went to law school, it was not hard for students to graduate without much or even any debt. That’s no longer the case. UT is one of the least expensive major law schools, but many grads these days have to pile up a large debt load.

What do students get for that increased outlay?

For one thing, the faculty to student ratio is lower, but Jewett says that the size of his classes never mattered.

The atmosphere has also changed. In 1972, the school focused on nuts and bolts preparation for a legal career. But “In 2022, the atmosphere seems more like that of a well-endowed liberal-arts college than that of the no-frills, no-nonsense law school of old. Students are treated like customers, not plebes.”

In 1972, there was hardly any “student support.” Today, there’s a great deal of hand-holding that provides lots of jobs for administrators. Jewett explains, “An array of support services and accommodations are also available, including yoga classes, lactation rooms, a food bank, and a ‘career closet’ that ‘offers every [student] access to professional clothes for job fairs, internships, and interviews. Students can choose their own outfits from the career closet, including shoes and accessories, that are theirs to keep.’ The law school also provides subsidized summer jobs for those who need them.”

An interesting feature of the old days was that students could take the bar exam after two years and if they passed, could enter practice. Jewett thinks it would be reasonable to restore that option, and I agree completely.